Anti-thyroid medications are taken for the treatment of an overactive thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism) which is also known as thyrotoxicosis. An overactive thyroid is a potentially serious condition and if you think you are infected with this condition, you should contact a reputable and professionally run online pharmacy website like this one. You shouldn’t blindly seek assistance from herbal or homeopathic remedies before approaching us first. If you are looking for an online pharmacy to purchase Medications, you should give this one a try, as we have had positive experiences making purchases here.
What are antithyroid medicatons?
These drug medications are mainly used for the treatment of overactive thyroid gland also known as hyperthyroidism.
Hyperthyroidism, also called overactive thyroid, is a condition where your thyroid makes and releases high levels of thyroid hormone.
This condition can make your metabolism speed up. Symptoms of hyperthyroidism include a rapid heartbeat, weight loss, increased appetite and anxiety.
It’s medically known that hyperthyroidism may be treated with surgery, antithyroid drugs, radioactive iodine, and beta blockers, but carbimazole is the most commonly used for treating hyperthyroidism.
Are there Different Types of Antithyroid Medications for Hyperthyroidism?
Most commonly used of the different types of antithyroid medications is carbimazole especially in the UK followed closely by propylthiouracil.
These are a class of medications that work in the same way and are used to treat your thyroid gland.
What are the Causes of Hyperthyroidism?
It’s known that there are different causes of hyperthyroidism where antithyroid medications are used for treatment can include:
- Grave’s disease – this is known as the most common cause of hyperthyroidism.
- Severe hyperthyroidism – a condition that’s also known as a thyroid storm or thyrotoxic crisis.
- Thyroid nodules – these are lumps that develop on the thyroid gland itself which have the propensity of releasing thyroid hormones –
- Treatment of some types of cancer – these treatments can give rise to hyperthyroidism.
As already mentioned earlier, there are many different types of medication for hyperthyroidism but in the UK, the most commonly taken medication is carbimazole, followed in popularity by propylthiouracil.
Both carbimazole and propylthiouracil are family to as class of medications called thionamides which all act in the same way when treating your thyroid gland.
The Work Dynamics of Antithyroid Medication
It begins with thyroxine, also known as T4, which essentially is our thyroid hormone that’s found in your body and is produced by your thyroid gland. This thyroid hormone circulates throughout the body in your bloodstream.
It helps to regulate the metabolism (body’s function), to work at the correct speed, and hence the reason why many of your body’s tissues and cells need thyroxine to normalize the way they work.
Going on to ‘hyperthyroidism’ this term means an overactive thyroid gland which means that the function of the thyroid gland becomes too active which results in the production of excess thyroxine.
The excessive production of thyroxine causes many of your body’s functions to work faster.
When medication such as one of the thionamides class of treatment is applied, the opposite effect of making too little thyroxine is the result that causes many of the body’s function to slow down.
Thionamides, such as carbimazole can reduce the amount of hormones that are released by the thyroid gland.
The point to make here is that carbimazole does not impact the thyroxine as it’s already made and stored in the body, but it does decrease its production, thus stabilizing the speed of body functions.
It logically follows then that a period of about 4 to 8 weeks need to lapse before your thyroxine level is normalized and your hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism reach a balance.
The Best Treatment for Hyperthyroidism
It’s medically known that carbimazole is the most popularly prescribed antithyroid medications used for an overactive thyroid gland especially in the UK.
If you happen to be allergic or you develop a side effect to carbimazole you can use another medication called propylthiouracil.
You may opt to use this medication during a thyrotoxic crisis especially during pregnancy, but your doctor has the final say on which treatment is the most effective for your case.
How Do You Take Antithyroid Medication?
It’s not a simple task to get the correct balance of thyroid hormone in your blood as it will take some time before a balance is struck.
There are two main ways that doctors use to try and get this hormone balance right.
The first step is to take a high dose of carbimazole so as to reduce the level of thyroxine in your blood.
The dose is continued until the hormone levels in your blood stabilize, usually after a period of 4 to 8 weeks (1 to 2 months) later.
Instead of needing the high level of thyroxine to function properly, your body only needs a certain amount to function normally, so the high dose needs to be reduced.
To make sure about the progress of reducing the level of thyroid hormone, a monthly blood test is needed.
Thereafter, the dose of the medication you are taking may be changed depending on the results of the effort in balancing your thyroid hormone levels.
‘Titration’ Mode of Treatment
Titration is the method of treatment that aims to keep your antithyroid level at the lowest possible level, necessary for balancing your hormone levels.
It’s not an easy task to accomplish and in fact, your doctor will find it difficult to determine the right dose of carbimazole to administer.
For instance if too much treatment is given, your thyroxine (thyroid hormone) level will become too low.
On the other hand, if insufficient treatment is administered, your thyroxine level will remain higher than normal.
These fluctuations are the reasons why regular blood tests and close monitoring are needed to ensure that a satisfactory thyroxine level is reached and kept stable.
The ‘block and replace’ Mode of Treatment
A second alternative to titration is to consciously take a high dose of carbimazole every day.
The high dose effectively stops your thyroid gland from producing any thyroxine (chemical hormone).
From here, you doctor can follow up with a daily prescribed dose of thyroxine to maintain your thyroxine levels in the blood to stay at a normal level.
This treatment is called a ‘block and replace’ method and has proven to be a popular medical practice for treating hyperthyroidism.
Does Antithyroid Medication Show Quick Results?
Proven studies have shown that antithyroid medications usually swing into motion about 10 to 14 days following the start of treatment.
It has been found that thyroid hormone levels begin to start to move to normalcy during the first several days and reach the normalcy level within 4 to 8 weeks as alluded to earlier.
What is the Duration for Treating an Overactive Thyroid Gland?
The way you take your medication is a determining factor in answering this question.
It should be noted that hyperthyroidism can enter either a relapsing or remitting phases which means that symptoms of your condition may improve (remit) or become exacerbated (get worse, in which case there may be a relapse.
Medical evidence has affirmed that that about half the people treated by the titration method will improve i.e. they achieve remission after a period of 18 to 24 months of therapy.
By comparison, patients generally achieve remission within six months following the start of treatment.
Bottom line
It’s very important not to downplay the potential damage that a condition such as hyperthyroidism can bring against your general health and wellbeing. For this reason, you should treat hyperthyroidism as a potentially serious condition that should be give due treatment from the time it is identified. To leave it untreated with its connection to metabolism can cause critical issues for your heart and other organs and especially during pregnancy.